List of 3D Applications

The program most often used for creating game graphics, 3DS is probably the gold standard of 3D applications. In recent years Autodesk has been snapping up all the competition and slowly they are becoming very similar. Package does just about everything you could imagine, as well as having perhaps one of the easiest IK systems ever created.

The ultimate evolution of Alias Sketch. Re-written for Windows as Alias Wavefront Maya in 1998, then simply Maya it was acquired by Autodesk in 2005. Responsible for the now nearly universal QWERTY control system as well as the visual move/scale/translate gizmo.

Softimage is another commercial package with a long history, starting as Softimage|3D in 1988, to become Softimage XSI in 2000, then purchased by Autodesk in 2009 to become Autodesk Softimage. In the middle there was a brief stint where it was owned by Microsoft. Softimage has been used to create numerous films and games. Since being acquired by Autodesk, the price has increased substantially, with the elimination of different tiers being available.

Back before being acquired by Autodesk, Softimage released a free version of Softimage based on Softimage 7.5, designed for mod makers working with Source Engine ( Halflife2 and others ) powered games. When XNA was released, ModTool was also available for XNA Creator Club subscribers to freely make commercial games. Since these days, Autodesk seems to have abandoned ModTool.

This program is extremely polished and intuitive to use, with a price that is extremely appealing. Silo is a dedicated modeler, with only minimal UV editing features. I highly recommend you check out the 30 day download, but caution you that the developer support is incredibly iffy. When evaluating your purchase, ask yourself if the version you are evaluating is worth the price of admission WITHOUT any further patches or upgrades, as there may be none!

In the beginning there was Lightwave and all was good. Then something happened and most of the Lightwave went off and started Luxology. Frankly I think we are lucky they did. It started off as a pure modeler but now it is a modeler, sculpter, texture/painting and rendering suite. There is now animation support but it is relatively primitive. Up until recently they have only had a paid demo, which was really really really stupid, but fortunately they have rectified that, somewhat.

As mentioned earlier, the team behind Modo started off at Newtek working on Lightwave. Lightwave has been around a long time, with roots on the Amiga in the 80s. Perhaps most famous for Babylon 5, Lightwave has been used in hundreds of games, films and tv series. It’s followers were almost rabidly loyal. Since the team at Luxology split off, Newtek seems to be spinning it’s wheels a bit. They announced a re-write called Lightwave CORE in 2009, and just released Lightwave 10 at the end of 2010. It is definitely worth checking out, Lightwave has always been an affordable option and I believe the current price is as low as it has ever been.

Blender is covered in much greater detail across this site, such as here. Its comprehensive, powerful and free, why not check it out? Simply put, it is one of the programs this site focuses on. As I personally just discovered, it is also a remarkably capable video composition tool.

Like Blender,Wings 3D is one of the primary programs featured elsewhere on this site. It’s a dedicated sub-division surface modeler with some UV editing features. Its based on Nendo, its remarkably powerful, a little awkward and completely free. With that price tag, you have no reason not to check it out! I find the workflow on par or better than most commercial packages.

Operating Systems: Windows, Linux and Mac OS. Other Unix OS’s built from sources

A full featured, extremely affordable 3D suite for the Macintosh, with a very Mac focused user interface. Integration with Unity is seamless. Full modeling, texturing, animating and rendering support out of the box.

Cinema has been around a long time, first release in 1991 on the Amiga. Full modeling, texturing, animating and rendering abilities are included as well as advanced painting tools. Most of the dynamics features ( Rigid/Soft Bodies, advanced particles, hair, etc.. ) are limited to the much more expensive Studio version. Two other versions exists, but neither is geared towards game development.

Another package that has been around for a very long time, and one I really try to love as we share the same home city. Truth is though, I just don’t understand this program, the workflow is just so different from what I am used to. It is a purely procedural package, working on a series of operators. Again, I want to try to explain it, but I simply can’t, I just don’t understand it! It is as full featured as any other suite out there. Even though I can’t explain this package to you, do let that put you off it, as SideFX has some of the best free trial options available, as well as a 99$ starving artist edition! So, please evaluate it for yourself!